ABOUT US

Brighter Futures London is a self-advocacy group of active young asylum seekers and refugees with roots in a variety of countries and continents; including West, Central and East Africa – from Togo to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia, to countries in South Central Asia such as Kurdistan and Afghanistan.

We are young leaders – united by a passion and commitment to improve the quality of life for other young asylum seekers and refugees. We are your future politicians and doctors, singers and models, engineers and artists, accountants and footballers. We are young people who are the same as any other young people in the UK and around the world.

WHAT DO WE DO?

We meet every week and work together as a group to fight for our rights as young asylum seekers and refugees. We challenge the media and campaign to get our voices heard and change policy.

We raise awareness about our experiences and the obstacles we go through. We conduct research and speak at conferences, produce exhibitions and speak on the radio, and develop our leadership skills through training – and we also have fun!

WHAT WE WANT

We want to share our experiences of being young asylum seekers and refugees in the UK to improve the opportunities and experiences of other young people faced with the same obstacles we have had to overcome. We want our human rights to be acknowledged. We want to make a difference to our lives and to the lives of other young asylum seekers and refugees.[/one_fourth]

WE WANT TO HAVE OUR VOICES HEARD

We want people to understand – why we come to the UK and what life is like for us here. We want to express ourselves without fear. We want to share our energy, vibrancy and culture. We want to be recognised for what we contribute and what more we can give if the barriers are removed. We want to have the same opportunities as any other young person living in the UK.

We want to have relationships built on trust and not on disbelief. We want to be seen as children and young people first rather than being defined by our immigration status.